The Battle of Hastings 1066,
The battle of Hastings took place in 1066 because of a disputed succession. For the previous 24 years England had been ruled by Edward the Confessor, who, despite being married, had failed to produce any children to succeed him. It is thought that in the middle of his reign, in the year 1051, the king promised the English succession to his cousin, William, duke of Normandy. Edward had spent half his life in exile in Normandy, and clearly felt a strong debt of gratitude towards its rulers.
This plan went down badly with Edward’s English subjects, especially the family of his queen, Edith. She was the daughter of the country’s most powerful earl, Godwine, and in the later 1050s her brothers – the Godwinesons – became the dominant force in English politics. During the same period a long-lost relative of Edward, a boy known as Edgar Ætheling, was located in Hungary and brought to England. However his impeccable ancestry counted for nothing: when Edward died on 5 January 1066 it was his brother-in-law, Harold Godwinson, who claimed the throne, insisting that the old king had nominated him in his dying moments.
Harold was crowned the very next day, but soon had to fend off challenges to his rule. The first – an unexpected invasion led by Harold Hardrada, king of Norway – he successfully overcame on 25 September 1066 by winning the battle of Stamford Bridge in Yorkshire. The second challenge came from William, duke of Normandy, who landed at Pevensey in Sussex three days later.
Read MoreThis plan went down badly with Edward’s English subjects, especially the family of his queen, Edith. She was the daughter of the country’s most powerful earl, Godwine, and in the later 1050s her brothers – the Godwinesons – became the dominant force in English politics. During the same period a long-lost relative of Edward, a boy known as Edgar Ætheling, was located in Hungary and brought to England. However his impeccable ancestry counted for nothing: when Edward died on 5 January 1066 it was his brother-in-law, Harold Godwinson, who claimed the throne, insisting that the old king had nominated him in his dying moments.
Harold was crowned the very next day, but soon had to fend off challenges to his rule. The first – an unexpected invasion led by Harold Hardrada, king of Norway – he successfully overcame on 25 September 1066 by winning the battle of Stamford Bridge in Yorkshire. The second challenge came from William, duke of Normandy, who landed at Pevensey in Sussex three days later.
